Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Battleground Weird WWII: M100 Medium Armored Mechanical Walker

M100A1 Mickey

M100A2 Hot Dog

M100A3 Stiletto

M100A4 Scout

M100A5 Barking Dog

Stud ARV

Notes: The M100 is the US's main combat walker and is produced in massive numbers which allows it to be exported to other Allied nations in large quantities. In fact, it is the most common walker model on the planet so why not have a dozen or so.

Date Introduced: M100A1 (Mid '44). M100A2 (Mid '44), M100A3 (Mid '44), M100A4 (Late '44), M100A5 (Mid '50) & M100 ARV (Early '45).Users: These models can be found in all branches of the US military and can be found on all war fronts.Vehicle Chart: I don't have a vehicle chart for the M100 so you'll have to wing it for yourself. If you do end up making one be sure to let me take a look at it so we can let the rest of the BGWWWII players give it a go.Crew: All models of the M100 except the M100A2, M100A4 and M100 ARV have a crew of 4 (commander, gunner, loader & driver). The M100A2 and M100 ARV models have a crew of 3 (commander, gunner or crane operator & driver). The M100A4 has a crew of 2 (driver & commander but the vehicle can carry an addition 2 passengers).Walker Type: All M100 variants are considered a W2, Medium walker and will be bound by all the appropriate rules as such.

Remote-Controlled Bow Machine Gun: All M100 variants have a bow machine gun that is controlled by the driver. The driver is able to manipulate it with a simple bar with a trigger, similar to the remote-controlled machine gun on the German Hetzer. Note that the driver can only operate the weapon when not moving the walker.

Searchlight: All M100s are fitted with an external searchlight that can be manipulated by one of the crew whilst dismounted. Alternatively, the searchlight can be locked in place and will shine forward of the turret whichever direction it is pointed. The owning Commander must state if the searchlight is fixed or not at the beginning of the battle. The searchlight has a 45-dergree cone and will illuminate out to 35".

M100 Turret Access: All M100 turrets have only one hatch located above the commander's position which gives the commander and gunner a quick way to escape but left the loader at a big disadvantage. To represent this dangerous egress problem for the loader, anytime a Penetration Effect indicates the crew must Bail-Out and pass a Morale Check or be KIA, the loader is at a +3 on his roll to represent his limited access to an escape hatch.AAMG: The vehicle's AAMG is fitted to the rear left side of the turret and can only be fired if the gunner is dismounted and only to the rear and left side of the walker. This is a piss pore location for the AAMG but tell it to the engineers or Paolo. WYSIWYG can be a real bitch sometimes, huh?

Scout Machine Guns: The M100A4 can mount a dual .50cal AAMG gun mount with a gun shield in a fixed position on the vehicles hull parapet. This weapon has a 120-degree arc of fire to the front of the walker. In addition, the Scout can mount an additional two fixed .30cal machine guns to the parapet with a 120-degree field of fire to the vehicle's flanks. This added firepower allowed the Scout to lay down some massive fire so it could withdraw and report the enemies location. When manning the dual .50cal, the gunner will receive a +5 Gun Shield cover from enemy fire coming from the front but will only receive a +2 to flank and rear fire. The gunners for the flank .30s cals will receive +5 Gun Shield cover to their flank that is closest to the forward weapon mount and +2 cover from all other directions. The flank machine guns have an Availability of 10. Some vehicle crews upgraded their flank .30cals to .50cals for the added firepower. This configuration is very rare and has an Availability 3.Open-Topped: The Scout is considered Open-Topped and will be bound by the rules as such.Tarpaulin Cover: The Scout is equipped with tarps as basic kit.

Unarmored Ammo Racks: Due to the lack of an armored ammo rack, all M100s that carry any kind of shells for its main gun will suffer an additional -1 to any result on the Penetration Effects chart.

IR Upgradable: The M100A3 is capable of being fitted with the M54 "Blacklight" IR System as described in the IR Rules. Availability is an 10 in the ETO and MTO and a 5 in any other theater.

Indirect Fire: The Mickey may use indirect fire with its 75mm howitzer. The weapons has a minimum range of 45" and an unlimited maximum range. The 75mm howitzer is also capable of firing a Willy Pete round using the regular rules as normal. WP Availability is 10 with D10 rounds available.

M100A2:The Hot Dog is fitted with a vehicle-mounted flamethrower in the turret. This flamethrower has enough fuel for 14 shots and will use the Vehicle Flamethrower template. Any penetrating hits to the turrets rear or side locations that cover the flamethrower's fuel tank will cause an automatic Catastrophic result on the Penetration Effects chart. The weapon takes an action to fire by the walker's gunner. The co-aux machine gun is still present so it can be used as well but not in the same action as firing the flamethrower as normal.M100A3: The Stiletto is capable of firing WP from its 75mm gun. The Availability is 10 with D10 rounds available. The Stiletto is also able to fire the T30 canister shell that was in essence a large shotgun that fired large steel balls in a devastating short ranged pattern. To fire the T30 just use the normal rules to fire the main gun and then place the 75mm Canister template 6" directly forward of the barrel and roll as normal for anything under the template. Anything that is touched by the 6" path forward before the template is placed will be as if hit by an A column hit. Note that because the shell is in essence a shotgun shell, it can be used whilst on the move without the normal To Hit modifiers for moving whilst firing. The Availability is 15 in the PTO and a 10 for all other theaters with D10+5 shells available.M100A5: The Barking Dog is fitted with two sets of three M40 recoilless rifles. Only a single M40 can be fired at any given time with the gunner using an action in doing so. The gunner will be at a +2 to hit as the sights for this set up was very awkward. Once all the weapons have been fired, the weapons can be reloaded by the crew but it will take two actions per weapon to do so. The loader must dismount and can only carry two shells at a time unless another crewman is assisting in which they can relay ammunition without any limitation. The M40 could also fire the M581 shell that peppers the targets with metal flechettes. Place the M40 Flechettes template directly 6" in front of the firing barrel. Any target that lays with the 6" path will be as if hit within an A column. Roll for effects for anything under the template as normal. The M581 Availability is 10 with D12 rounds available.Stud ARV: This ARV has a 20-ton crane placed in its turret and is bound by the normal rules as such. Note that the walker must spend two actions Bracing itself before it lifts anything.*Bow-Mounted Flamethrower: It was common for commanders to convert some of their M100s to carry a simple man-portable flamethrower fitted in the bow machine gun's position. This easy conversion allowed any M100 to become a deadly armored flamethrower perfect for use against the enemy in built up areas. The flamethrower is operated by the driver via the same controls as the bow machine gun. It takes an action to fire the flamethrower within the normal fire arc of the bow machine gun. The flamethrower has enough fuel for 8 shots and will use the Man-Portable flamethrower template. The tip of the template will be placed 2" directly in front of the bow machine gun's position. Any prone or standing figures between the template and tank will make an immediate Morale Check. All normal flamethrower rules apply. In addition, any penetrating hit to the HF location or left HS locations the flamethrower is located, will result in an automatic Catastrophic result on the Penetration Effects chart. Availability is a 15 in the PTO and a 5 in all other theaters.Wargaming Piece: You can pick up all the M100 variants from Dust Studios or FFG under the Dust Tactics or Dust Warfare game titles.